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Black Legion

2018-05-21T03:24:47Z

2601:2C1:8602:7AF4:98AB:5A13:190B:2500: /* Post-Heresy */

{{Infobox Traitor Legion
|Name = Black Legion
|Heraldry = [[Image:Blackleglogo.gif|Blackleglogo.gif]]
|Battle Cry = "We are returned! Death to the False Emperor!"<br>'''Luna Wolves:'''<br>"Kill for the living, kill for the dead!" or "Lupercal!"<br>'''Sons of Horus:'''<br>"For the Warmaster!"
|Original Name = Luna Wolves, later Sons of Horus
|Number = XVI
|Primarch = [[Horus|Horus Lupercal]]
|Original Homeworld = [[Cthonia]]
|Current Homeworld = [[Vengeful Spirit]]
|Champion = [[Abaddon|Ezekyle Abaddon]]
|Specialty = Flexible organization, Veteran Elites, Destroying Enemy Leadership
|Strength = [[What|Larger now than it was during the Horus Heresy]]
|Allegiance = [[Chaos Undivided]]
|Colours = Black and gold (Pale green as the Sons of Horus, grey as the Luna Wolves)
}}
{{Topquote|I recognize in thieves, traitors and murderers, in the ruthless and the cunning, a deep beauty - a sunken beauty.|Jean Genet}}
{{Topquote|Just because I'm a murdering, thieving, cowardly, traitorous sort doesn't mean I can't do my job properly.|James A. Owen}}

'''The Black Legion''' (Legion XVI) are one of the nine [[Space Marine]] legions which betrayed the Emperor during the Heresy. Their Primarch was [[Horus]]. Originally called themselves the '''Luna Wolves''' before changing their name to '''The Sons of Horus'''. After the HH they changed their name to '''The Black Legion''', possibly due to being ashamed to carry the name of one who failed to conquer the Imperium, or as a mourning, together with the black armor. Opinion likely differs between warbands. Canon has now been muddled further with the new ADB novel series, where Abaddon officially dissolved the Sons of Horus, and merged its old forces in with Abby's friends from the other Legions into an entirely new Legion. This narrative making it clear that anybody who joins the Black Legion is NOT just changing the name of the guy who is signing the paycheck, but rejecting their previous Legion or Chapter identities and committing to fighting the Long War.

The Black Legion was depicted as the "vanilla" Chaos Space Marine legion in the past, similar to how the [[Ultramarines]] are with the loyalists. For a long time they were mostly overlooked fluff-wise, because, like the Ultrasmurfs, they weren't that interesting being the 'middle-of-the-road' chaos marines. Now though they have their own Codex Supplement and are an elites oriented army with possessed, chosen, and terminators being the norm for a fluffy BL army.

==History==

===Pre-Heresy===
[[File:Black_legion_chaos_marine_by_masteralighieri-d4cl5fy.jpg|240px|thumb|left|OK. Chainsword? Check. Bolter? Check. Power Armor maintained and ready? Check. Well, off to the next Black Cru...wait, what? [[Abaddon|He]] did what again? Against [[Creed|whom]]? <s>Awww fudge. Another crusade foiled</s> well, I guess we're going to Terra now!.]]
When they were still loyalists, there were known as the greatest and most powerful legion during the [[Great Crusade]], the Luna Wolves. This epithet they earned during the pacification of [[Solar System|Luna]], the first battle of the Great Crusade, against the local gene-cults, as when the cults conceded defeat they asked the Emperor to "call off his wolves." They won many victories and brought many worlds into compliance. After Horus won the Ullanor Crusade, he was given the title "Warmaster" by the Emperor. This gave him almost complete control of all the space marine legions and the Imperial Forces. He renamed his Legion the Sons of Horus, and ordered them to repaint their armour from grey-white to to a green, or maybe green-grey, colour scheme that no one seems to know how to paint properly Forge World paint theirs a teal colour, but there are examples of green-grey, jade, and a Wehrmacht-style feldgrau out there too - and then some older art just takes the lazy approach and makes them straight-up grey.

===The Heresy===
After Horus was severely wounded on Davin, he received visions from the Chaos Gods who told him that the Emperor would cast him and his brother Primarchs aside once he attained full God-hood. After seemingly being easily convinced by them, Horus turned traitor. He corrupted half of his brother Primarchs, the majority of the Imperial army and half of the [[Adeptus Mechanicus]] to his side. The war lasted seven years and turned a lot of the galaxy into a meat grinder. The Sons of Horus at this point were openly worshiping Horus and had big plans on ruling the galaxy. After Horus' defeat during the siege of Holy Terra, the Traitor Legions fled to the Eye of Terror. <s>You know, instead of saying "Well Horus is dead but so is your Emperor" and continuing to attack the Imperial Palace where they might have won.</s> Rowboat Girlyman was hot on their heels along with The Lion and The Wolf tag team. Kinda the whole reason Horus wanted to finish it decisively.

===Post-Heresy===
When the Traitors fled to the Eye of Terror, the blaming each other for the failure at Terra began. The Sons of Horus took the brunt of this blame, and proceeded to retreat to the world of Maeleum, where they built a fancy tomb for Horus's body and sat around feeling sorry for themselves, not even bothering to select a new commander.

The bitterness between the Legions broke out into war once the Emperor's Children decided they needed more slaves for their Slaaneshi-related [[/d/|shenanigans]]. Being the Legion that had suffered the least at Terra (due to being occupied with the aforementioned shenanigans), the Children began to raid other warbands for their slaves and resources, culminating with sacking Maeleum and taking the body of Horus (and Worldbreaker) for Fabius Bile's genetic experiments.

The former Justaerin captain Falkus Kibre, with the assistance of several other Chaos warbands, eventually managed to track down Abaddon and the ''[[Vengeful Spirit]]'' deep within the Eye of Terror, and told him about the theft and cloning of Horus. He knew all this allegedly in a "you found me because I wanted to be found" kind of way. Abaddon was planning on taking command of the Sons of Horus at this point, returning from his self-imposed exile of hunting monsters and thinking about who he is. His ultimate vision: creating a pan-Traitor Legions army with himself and the [[Cthonia|Cthonians]] as the head. Welcome to any traitor Marines, regardless of previous rivalries or Chaotic alignments, Slaanesh dude and Khorne dude calling each other bro, etc. Chaos Messiah then used the ''Vengeful Spirit'' to crush the Emperor's Children at the [[Battle of Harmony]], with Abaddon personally killing the clone of Horus with his own Talon in an act of symbolism and such.

Abaddon unified the Sons of Horus soon after and dubbed them the Black Legion. The black either to show mourning for Horus, or segregation from him. Either way is fine. Possessed became huge in the Legion, although not without a rocky start, as daemons were pissed when Astartes would switch gods. Unaligned daemon beasts are probably the best way to go. The Sorcerers got a hold of this quickly enough and formed a regulated possessed guild known as The Tormented, not so open market anymore. Next they boosting their numbers like crazy, made friends with other cool dudes that liked black armor and hated the Imperium, and curb stomped a Death Guard upstart company that was pirating Abbadon's intellectual property and graphic design work, largely ending the Slave Wars.

The new ADB novels indicate that the Black Legion is an open institution for anyone who is serious about waging the Long War against the Imperium (and not just raiding / pillaging / winning favour with the chaos gods / feeling sad about it) and is strong enough to prosper. The founding members came from a variety of different legions.

The Black Legion was the first to "come out" of the Eye of Terror (not counting the Night Lords and the Alpha Legion who never went inside Slaanesh's pink folds) to assail the Imperium after the Great Scourging. In their first Black Crusade they killed Dorn allegedly, picked up goth Excalibur, and caused a number of the High Lords of Terra to get hemorrhoids from the butt clenching. After the crusade the Black Legion broke up and warbands did their own shit. Until the Second Black Crusade. Abaddon knows that his forces are not large enough or organized enough to break through the massive quantities of Imperial forces that stand between him and Terra, and thus plans to cause enough chaos (heh) to allow legions of daemons to enter realspace and overwhelm the defenders of the Imperium. This has received a mixed reception among the fanbase.

[[File:Black Legion.jpg|thumb|right|300px|A Black legionnaire in the thick of combat on Cadia. Why's there a head in his armpit?]]
Prior to Talon, there had only ever been five awesome members of the Black Legion: [[Horus Lupercal]], [[Araghast the Pillager]], [[Neroth]], [[Kain]], and [[Eliphas]] (who wasn't even originally from the Black Legion). And the middle two are kind of iffy on the cool factor. Neroth is a whiny bitch, but he makes up for it by shitting free doombolts. Kain knows better than to speak given most of Chaos' shitty Abaddon admiring script, which makes him cool. With the new fluff we've gained an impressive cast in the Black Legion's founders, taking in a former [[Iskandar Khayon|Thousand Sons sorcerer]], a [[Lheorvine Ukris|World Eaters Havoc]], an [[Telemachon Lyras|Emperor's Children swordmaster]] and a Fallen Angel.

However it is only a matter of time before someone overthrows Abaddon, we're betting on Eliphas, a revived Araghast, or [[Huron Blackheart]]...probably Eliphas (it's in his name after all, Eliphas, the ''Inheritor'' of the Black Legion)...but still...BRING ARAGHAST BACK!

[[HMKids]] have done a good job for their [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bH3Y-bufJI theme], it's full of energy and fury towards the False Emperor and his slaves!

==Culture==
The Luna Wolves had a culture that was based primarily on that of the hive gangs of their home planet, Cthonia.

There are two informal institutions of note in the Luna Wolves: the Mournival and the Warrior Lodges. The Mournival was a group of four captains who acted as advisers to Horus. They were selected based on their temperaments, each of them supposedly embodying one of the Four Humors, bodily fluids that in ancient times were said to govern the emotions of men. The aggressive Abaddon embodied the Choleric temperament, the light-hearted Tarik Torgaddon the Sanguine, the rational Garviel Loken the Phlegmatic, and the morose "Little" Horus Aximund the Melancholic. The Warrior Lodges were based off the totem-animal cults of the planet Davin, which was conquered by the Luna Wolves and the Word Bearers (who would later create similar societies in other legions as a means of spreading Chaos corruption). They were secret societies where the Luna Wolves could associate outside of the chains of command and speak freely without fear of reprisal. Several in the legion, such as Garviel Loken, disapproved of their secrecy, a suspicion that turned out to be justified when traitor marines started using them to conspire in secret.

The Black Legion, however, has no overarching culture, being a collection of whatever warbands from whatever Legions pledge their loyalty to Abaddon and paint their armor black. This is as Abaddon intends, as he believes that Chaos Space Marines should have the freedom to follow the traditions of their forefathers or defy them as they please. The only thing that unites them is a dedicated conviction to the Long War. Several Sons of Horus warbands refused to join the Black Legion and continued to wear their original colors. The Black Legion refers to these <s>legions </s> (FAIL) Warbands as the "Thrice-Cursed Traitors".

==Leadership==
While Abaddon is the undisputed Master of the Black Legion, even he has lieutenants that assist him in leading its disparate factions.
===The Ezekarion===
Beneath Abaddon is the Ezekarion, the co-founders and senior warlords of the Black Legion. They are Abaddon's closest brothers and advisers, providing him counsel in the [[Long War]] and are the only ones allowed to call him by his first name. They've also gathered some hanger-ons over the years. Known members include:

*'''Falkus Kibre''': Former [[Brother-Captain]] of the [[Justaerin]] [[Terminator Squad]]s in the Sons of Horus's First Company, now the leader of the Aphotic Blade/[[Bringers of Despair]]. He's essentially the [[First Captain]] of the Black Legion.
*'''Sargon Eregesh''': Former [[Chaplain]] of the [[Word Bearers]] Brazenhead Chapter, now the Lord-Prelate of the Black Legion. He's essentially the Chief [[Dark Apostle]] of the Black Legion. He was captured at some point prior to the 13th Black Crusade, where he went insane from captivity (well, more insane).
*'''[[Iskandar Khayon]]''': Former Captain of a line Company in the [[Thousand Sons]] First Fellowship under [[First Captain]] [[Ahzek Ahriman]], now the Lord-Vigilator of the Black Legion. Basically, he's Abaddon's premier hitman, eliminating those who threaten the Warmaster's plans but refuse to face him in open battle. He surrendered to the Inquisition just before the 13th Black Crusade, to deliver a message to the Emperor: the Long War is about to end.
* '''Telemachon Lyras''': Former Captain of the [[Emperor's Children]]'s 51st Company, now Herald of the Warmaster and commander of the Shrieking Masquerade, a warband of [[Chaos Raptors]]. His former company abandoned Khayon's at Terra, and Khayon took vengeance by making Lyras dependent on Khayon's presence to feel anything. Though Khayon freed him later, the two formed a rivalry which threatened the Black Legion's stability at one point.
* '''[[Lheorvine Ukris]]''': Former Captain of the [[World Eaters]] 50th Company and commander of the War God's Maw. Probably the closest thing to a friend that Khayon had, he was killed by the [[Blood Angels]] on Mackan during the 7th Black Crusade.
* '''Ashur-Kai Qezremah''': Former Librarian of Khayon's company and former mentor, later the void-seer of the ''Vengeful Spirit'', the Chaos equivalent of a [[Navigator]]. He was taken by the Warp Ghosts (one of which was Qezremah's future self, it's complicated) as payment for leading the Black Legion through a Warp storm to launch the First Black Crusade.
* '''Ceraxia:''' A [[Magos]] of the [[Dark Mechanicus]] who was made Mistress of the Armoury. Yes, a woman has a position of leadership among the largest coalition of Chaos Space Marine Warbands. Impressive.
* '''Valicar Hyne:''' A former Captain of the [[Iron Warriors]], later Master of the Black Fleet.
* '''Vortigern:''' A [[Fallen Angels|Fallen Angel]] who was Captain of the cruiser ''With Blade Drawn'', leader of the Black Lions and the most cheerless of the Ezekarion bar none. Yes, one of the Fallen is part of the Black Legion's leadership. Oh, to see the reaction of the [[Dark Angels]].
* '''Amurael Enka:''' Former Medicae Quintus of the Sons of Horus, later the de facto Chief Apothecary of the Black Legion. Some wild daemons of Khorne sliced him in half, forcing Abaddon to place him in a [[Chaos Dreadnought]].
* '''Ilyaster Faylech''': Former Apothecary of the [[Death Guard]] who defected from the Legion Host and helped Khayon try to kill its warlord, Thagus Daravek.
* '''Moriana:''' A former [[Inquisitor]] who helped found the resurrectionist faction of the [[Inquisition]] and spread the Cult of the Saviour Emperor after the Horus Heresy. After succumbing to the temptation of trying to harness Chaos as a means of resurrecting the Emperor and founding the Horusian faction, she became a dedicated servant of the Chaos Gods and a powerful seer Abaddon occasionally consulted, telling him of Drach'nyen and the [[Blackstone Fortress]]es. A member in name alone, as she answers only to the Chaos Gods themselves. Moriana is divisive among the Ezekarion, with some (Iskandar, Amurael, and Lheorvine) openly mistrusting her, while others welcome her for their own reasons (Sargon and Ashur-Kai valuing her prophetic visions, while Telemachon allies with her as a means of advancing his own ambitions). Everyone else doesn't care enough to voice their own opinions.

=== Chosen of Abaddon ===
The Chosen of Abbadon are the top four generals of the Black Legion. It's a title that Abbadon bestows on his top lieutenants. The role's of the Chosen are complementary to one another insuring the synergy of the Black Legion command. The Chosen of Abbadon have a lot of political power in the legion and usually a chosen general of Slaanesh, for example, will clam command over all slaaneshy astartes in the Black Legion. Not necessarily a part of the Ezekarion but definitely another branch of the Black Legion government. The current four are-

*'''Devram Korda''': Lord Ravager. Serving as the vanguard general that first makes landfall in a planet about to be curb stomped. Leads the invasion fleets and is the captain of Abbadon's chosen elite bodyguard. He has a very, very impressive Resume.
*'''Ygethmor the Deceiver''': Lord Deceiver. Serving as a chaos fortune teller and all things esoteric. Looks through the Warp and decides where to attack next and such. A lot of people tried to kill him, some people said they killed him. Jokes aside he is very powerful.
*'''Skyrak Slaughterborn''': Lord Corruptor. The propaganda guy. Keeps chaos lords in line. Kind of like Abaddon's hype man at times. Skyrak is very Nurgle.
*'''Threxos Hellbreed''': Lord Purgator. The guy that scrapes the bottom of the barrel after a planet has been conquered for every single resource and every drop of blood. Dragging imperials in chains and erecting chaos shit. Also functions as the admiral of the Black Fleet and usually as the head of the Khorne marines of the Black Legion known as the Hounds of Abbadon.

==On the Tabletop==

The Black Legion had their own 7th edition supplement, which was essentially the same as the base Chaos 'dex with the exception that everything that can must take "Veterans of the Long War." The book gave them some formations, relics, and a few unique missions. It should be noted that this book offered the only way that Chaos can get an Eternal Warrior character without incredibly lucky rolling on the Chaos Boon Table. The rules from said supplement, however, have since been recollected and expanded upon in the "Traitor Legions" supplement. This retains the usual elite-focused army by making Terminators and Chosen troops, while giving them permanent hatred against Loyalist scum. And their decurion gives them first turn deep strike!

==Daily Rituals of the Black Legion==
04:00 - The Black Legionnaires rise up from their spiked beds.

04:30 - Mutation Checks. Each Black Legionnaire is checked on their mutation levels.

04:50 - Morning Meal. A light meal is made by the legion's serfs. Failure to cook properly will result in said serf being flayed alive and his/her skinless body is forced to walk for a hundred miles until they die of exhaustion, pain, shock and blood loss. Their dead bodies are promptly used as sex toys by any Slaanesh worshipers.

05:00 - Morning Prayer. A prayer is done for each Chaos God, thus it is extra long.

09:00 - Morning Firing Rites. The Black Legion hone in on their shooting skills upon captured Imperial Citizens.

10:00 - Battle Practice. The Black Legion fight and train within gladiatorial rounds.

12:00 - Tactical Indoctrination. The Black Legion are tasked on which planet to invade, who to kill, who to take prisoner, and for what end.

14:50 - Midday Break. A short break is accompanied with cookies made from the remains of puppies and beverages distilled from the tears of crying children.

15:00 - Evening Firing Rites.

16:00 - Battle Practice.

17:00 - Evening Prayer. A prayer is held which is just as long, although more varied depending on each marines preference, so it generally resembles a massive just as planned brawl, orgy disease fest.

21:00 - Evening Meal. A feast is made by the legion's serfs. [[Emprah Burgers|Chaos Burgers]] are ordered in the dozen. Occasionally they’ll receive 5 million pizzas which the Angry Marines has prank delivered to them and then they’ll either have to kill the delivery boy or pay up.

22:00 - Bitch at the Emperor. A special one hour period is held exclusively for the Black Legion to bitch at the Emperor and why he stinks. Big E just laughs at this and gives them the middle finger.

23:00 - Bitch at Abaddon. A secret special one hour period is held by fellow Black Legionnaires to bitch at Abaddon's failures and incompetence. Publicly called 'Free Time' to avoid Abaddon's wrath. Some marines will put on performances where they pretend to have their arms drop off.

24:00 - Rest Period. The Black Legionnaires rest in their spiked beds.

==Noted members==
* [[Horus]]
* [[Abaddon|Abaddon the Despoiler]]
* [[Araghast the Pillager]]
* [[Eliphas]]
* [[Ygethmor|Ygethmor the Deceiver]]
* [[Neroth]]
* [[Hastur Sejanus]]

{{Template:Chaos-Official}}
[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]][[Category:Chaos]][[Category:Space Marines]]

Word Bearers

2018-05-21T02:49:03Z

2601:2C1:8602:7AF4:98AB:5A13:190B:2500: /* Word Bearers Today */

{{Infobox Traitor Legion
|Name = Word Bearers
|Heraldry = [[Image:Post-Heresy Daemon Head.jpg|250px]]
|Battle Cry = Verses from the Book of Lorgar
|Original Name = Imperial Heralds
|Number = XVII
|Primarch = [[Lorgar|Lorgar Aurelian]]
|Original Homeworld = Colchis
|Current Homeworld = Sicarus
|Champion = [[Erebus]], [[Kor Phaeron]]
|Specialty = Mass Indoctrination, Summoning [[Daemon]]s, Cult Uprisings.
|Strength = Legion strength
|Allegiance = [[Chaos Undivided]]
|Colours = Dark crimson and steel
}}
{{topquote|By its very nature, theology tends - and under certain conditions, must always tend - to become demonology.|Thomas Mann, Doctor Faustus}}
{{topquote|From the fires of betrayal unto the blood of revenge we bring the name of Lorgar, the Bearer of the Word, the favoured son of Chaos, all praise be given unto him. From those what would not heed we offer praise to those who do, that they might turn their gaze our way and gift us with the boon of pain, to turn the galaxy red with blood, and feed the hunger of the gods.|Excerpt from the three hundred and forty-first Book of the Epistles of Lorgar}}
{{topquote|We are twice armed if we fight with faith.|Plato}}
{{topquote|Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil? Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?|Epicurus}}

The Word Bearers are a legion of [[Chaos Space Marines]], sons of the [[Primarch]] [[Lorgar]], and the most infamous army of zealous, violent [[Space Marine|demigods of war]] this side of the [[Eye of Terror]]. Their bloody, thunderous, bellicose fury would make the [[Black Templars]] blush if they weren't so [[Heresy|GOD DAMN HERETICAL]]. They are essentially Jehovah's Witnesses fully armored and with a lot of guns.

==History==
There is a phenomenon of psychology that some people are prone to zealotry. It does not matter what they believe in, when they come to believe in something they believe in it with all their heart. This type of individual who is likely to end up becoming a fanatical member to a certain ideology will if they somehow become disillusioned with it, often find it easier to adopt an opposing or opposite ideology and be just as fanatical to said new cause rather than simply moderating their commitment to their first ideology as needed and making caveats and exceptions to its general principles. The Word Bearers are this phenomenon at its most extreme.
===Early History===
[[File:Dark_apostle_by_kunkka.jpg|250px|left|thumb|Why hello there unbeliever. Would you mind a small theological chat?]]
The Emperor used the genetic templates of the Primarchs to create the Legiones Astartes after the powers of Chaos stole the gestating Primarchs. Those who received gene-seed from template number seventeen stood apart from their brother Astartes in duty and outlook. They fought with utter devotion and a fanatical zeal. Their original recruits were drawn from the sons of defeated enemies, raised to know the crimes of their fathers and the price of the Emperor's forgiveness. Thus while the other Legions went to war with righteousness, the XVIIth fought with the cold fury that only the condemned and redeemed could know. While other Legions took some time to acquire formal names, the XVIIth was named the Imperial Heralds almost immediately after their founding. This was due to their early role: to deliver the Emperor's ultimatum of submission or destruction.
Upon defeating an enemy, the Imperial Heralds would empty their libraries and records of any contents deemed heretical or sorcerous. Condemned works, individuals, and buildings would be destroyed in the name of the Imperial Truth (though they also tended to exterminate the entire population of the places they conquered; see Antarctica). The Imperial Heralds repeated this process all across Terra during the Unification Wars. This gave the Imperial Heralds a rarely-spoken nickname among the greater Imperium: the Iconoclasts.

===Great Crusade===
[[File:Daemon world by majesticchicken.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Okay, so the Imperial Cult might not exactly be hot chickenwings with thousand island sauce, but worshipping Chaos might not be the best alternative.]]
The planet Colchis was full of people that worshipped a watered down version of chaos. Primarch XVII was adopted by Kor Phaeron, one of the chief priests, and given the name Lorgar. Lorgar received a vision of the Emperor and formed a religion around him, leading to a six-year religious civil war that Lorgar's faction eventually won, shortly before the Emperor came to Colchis. During the Great Crusade, they bore the word of the Emperor to new worlds, wiping out any traces of dissenting faiths as they assimilated cultures into the Imperial way of life, including enforcing the worship of the God-Emperor.

Their thorough attention to this kept them far behind the pace of other expeditionary fleets and drew the ire of the Emperor. He repeatedly made it clear that he did not consider himself a god and wanted Lorgar to knock it off and catch up with the other fleets. Lorgar responded by penning the original Lectitio Divinitatus, which would much later form the core of the beliefs of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor. Finally, the Emperor had enough and ordered the Ultramarines to make an example of him. They torched the world of Khur and called the entire Word Bearers legion to kneel in its ashes before Guilliman, Malcador, and the Emperor.

To say Lorgar was devastated would be an understatement. He spent an entire month in seclusion, taking only the advice of Kor Phaeron and First Chaplain Erebus. They revealed to him that they had kept the old faith alive and that many worlds appeared to have religions that aligned with it, suggesting a more primal truth than worship of the God-Emperor. They convinced Lorgar that the primordial truth was truer than the Imperial Truth and he took his legion on a pilgrimage to the Eye of Terror to learn more about Chaos.

===Chaos===
They were the guys who used to be really, really, really loyal to the [[Emprah]]. Like, these guys used to be the Church of the Emprah. After the [[Horus Heresy]], they became the complete opposite. Now they go around fucking up the Emprah's sepulchre planets, relic worlds, and cardinal worlds, setting up cathedrals to the [[Chaos Gods]] in their places. They are also notable for being the one [[Chaos]] legion to still have [[Chaplain]]s, known as [[Dark Apostle]]s, which is probably because they invented the idea of Space Marine preachers and no other traitor Legions wanted them after the Horus Heresy was over, because there is little sense in having morale officer in Chaos force. Unlike the other Chaos legions and renegade chapters, [[Red Corsairs]] notwithstanding, these guys actually managed to sort of keep their shit together rather than having everyone with a slightly fancier costume take his ball and go home. They're sorta like [[grimdark]] Chaos <s>Taliban</s> <s>Al-Qaeda</s> ISIS. Except the Word Bearers make <s>the Taliban</s> <s>Al-Qaeda</s> ISIS look like [[Tumblr|hippies]] in comparison.

Their hobbies include human sacrifice, prayers to the [[Chaos Gods]], [[daemon]] summoning, and occult study.

First Chaplain Erebus was actually pretty much the driving force behind Horus turning to Chaos. At the climax of ''Horus Rising'', Erebus steals a weapon from the [[Interex]], which caused them to get all butthurt and blame [[Horus]] and the Luna Wolves for the theft. In the next book, ''False Gods'', Horus and the merry Luna Wolves take a trip to Davin IV on Erebus's advice, during which all hell breaks loose and Horus takes some wounds and comes as close as a [[primarch]] can to a near-death experience (he basically took a nap). [[Abaddon]], having as many daddy issues as Horus, decided it'd be a good idea to follow the advice of Erebus and take Horus to a local temple run by the serpent-worshiping locals, where it was said he could be healed. Erebus sent Horus into a trance and basically whispered sweet nothings about [[Chaos]] into his ear the entire time, planting the very first seed of corruption.

==Word Bearers Today==
After 10,000 years of violence, terror, destruction, and fervent worship of the Ruinous Powers, combined with orchestrating the Horus Heresy, the Word Bearers have achieved god-tier infamy status unmatched by [[Black Legion|nearly]] ANY OTHER CHAOS WORSHIPERS. The Black Legion and other Legions have proven to be much greater threats to the Imperium overall, but the Word Bearers' sheer zealous hatred for the Imperium and the Imperial Cult propels them to some truly legendary status. It truly cannot be overstated. Sabtec, an Aspiring Champion from the Word Bearers Trilogy(read it, it's [[Awesome]]), was personally rewarded with a masterwork Power Sword by EREBUS HIMSELF for not only for heroics in defeating an entire order of the Sisters of Battle, [[FATAL|but for his 13th Coterie capturing, then ritualistically raping, mutilating, and sacrificing an ENTIRE COMPANY of Sisters]]. Yeah.... Shit....

Yet despite this fanaticism, they are the most organized, structured, and uniform Traitor Legion by quite a lot(Iron Warriors is close, Black Legion not really, and Alpha Legion....).
As such, combined with their surprisingly understandable and HUMAN conflict during the Great Crusade and Heresy, the Word Bearers function as a true brotherhood. Backstabbing is mostly minimal, command hierarchy is mostly respected, the Marines themselves are comrades or sometimes even FRIENDS, and great honors are given to those who fall in battle and those who rise to power. It is not accurate to say that they join hands and sing the gospel of love in comparison to other Legions though, as [[Grimdark|bitter rivalries can surface, leaders of Hosts can....Excommunicate you if they aren't a fan of your interpretations of the faith, and, in true Chaos Space marine fashion, the strong are strongest alone.]]

==Organization==
Yeah, we know what you're thinking: organization? Of a Traitor Legion? While it may surprise you, the Word Bearers still function as an organized Legion (though much looser than the Legiones Astartes). Ironically, their uttermost commitment to Chaos as a religion gives them a semblance of order (DOUBLE HERESY?) As such, they have a clearly designated hierarchy and command structure. While Lorgar remains the ultimate master of the Word Bearers, in reality he has allowed command to fall as such:

*'''Master of the Faith''': The de jure head of the Word Bearers in Lorgar's absence, currently held by First Captain [[Kor Phaeron]].

*'''Chief Dark Apostle''': The head of the priesthood, and true power behind the throne of the legion, currently held by [[Erebus]].

*'''Dark Council''': A collection of Dark Apostles who oversee the overall actions of the Legion, and confirm the ascension of other Dark Apostles.

*'''Dark Apostle''': spiritual leader of a Host, the primary organization of the Word Bearers following the Horus Heresy. Dark Apostles are confirmed by the Dark Council and in turn make the decisions of the rank and advancement for the Host.

*'''Coryphaus''': The senior military commander of a host, comparable to a [[Chapter Master]] or [[First Captain]]. The Coryphaus leads the Host's returns during religious ceremonies (and trust us, the Word Bearers have a lot of religious ceremonies) and makes all tactical decisions during actual combat, freeing up the Dark Apostle to better commune with the Chaos Gods.

*'''Icon Bearers''': A Word Bearer charged with carrying the Icon of the XVII Legion in battle, similar to a Company Standard Bearer in a [[Space Marine Chapter]].

*'''Champion''': The leader of Word Bearer squads, know as coteries. Comparable to a Squad Captain from the Legiones Astartes.

*'''Aspiring Champion''': Another Squad leader, comparable to a [[Brother-Sergeant|Sergeant]].

*'''Anointed''': The [[Terminator]]s of a Host.

*'''Gal Vorbak''': The [[Possessed Marine]]s of a Host.

*'''Warrior-Brother''': The rank and file soldiers of a host.

==Daily Rituals==

*04:00: Morning Prayer: The Word Bearers are roused from their cells to begin the day with sermons from the Book of Lorgar read by the Dark Apostle. Prayer lasts four hours, one dedicated to each of the Chaos Gods.
*08:00: Morning Firing Rites: The Word Bearers engage in target practice. Often using human slaves captured during raids.
*09:00: Battle Practice: The Word Bearers descend to the practice cages for training.
*12:00: Midday Meal: A light meal is prepared by the Legion Serfs. Cooking the meal improperly will often see the Legion Serf become the next meal.
*12:30: Tactical Indoctrination: The Word Bearers gather for a tactical briefing, showing which planets they will be invading, and locations of cathedrals to the False Emperor which must be destroyed. Marines who have not demonstrated enough daily heretical devotion are dispatched to go door to door in Imperial neighborhoods with the Book of Lorgar, inquiring "“Excuse me sir, do you have a moment to talk about CHAOS?"
*14:00: Evening Firing Rites: The Word Bearers gather for target practice.
*15:00: Evening Prayer: The Word Bearers gather for the Dark Apostle to lead them in prayer. Daemonic pacts are often made during Evening Prayer, and Marines may be blessed with possession.
*19:00: Evening Meal: A feast is prepared by the Legion Serfs. Sometimes Legion Serfs are on the menu.
*20:00: Evening Maintenance: Word Bearers will be stripped of their [[Power Armour]] (assuming they can still remove it) for repairs to be completed. Sometimes Warrior-Brothers will see the Apothecary to check on the status of mutations.
*00:00: Rest Period: The Word Bearers retire to their cells for rest.

==Famous Word Bearers==
In [[Dawn of War|Dark Crusade,]] the Dark Apostle [[Eliphas]] leads a warband of Word Bearers to take over Kronus. [[Awesome]] ensues.

In the videogame [[Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate]], an ENTIRE Word Bearers ARMY OF 10,000 MARINES is lead by the Chaos LORD Zymran, who is the main antagonist of the game. Apart from sounding MANLY, he does nothing but taunt the Ultramarines like a saturday morning cartoon villain (''Seriously all he needs is that large mustache to twirl and he'll be as contrived as the [[Abbadon|Warmaster]] himself''). Ultimately somewhat forgettable.

There's also some faggot named Marduk, from the book series, as well as his awesome terminator Coryphaus, Kol Badar.

Amongst [[/tg/]], the most famous Word Bearer would be [[Dranon]].

{{Template:Chaos-Official}}
[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]][[Category:Chaos]][[Category:Space Marines]]

Word Bearers

2018-05-21T02:46:34Z

2601:2C1:8602:7AF4:98AB:5A13:190B:2500: /* Word Bearers Today */

{{Infobox Traitor Legion
|Name = Word Bearers
|Heraldry = [[Image:Post-Heresy Daemon Head.jpg|250px]]
|Battle Cry = Verses from the Book of Lorgar
|Original Name = Imperial Heralds
|Number = XVII
|Primarch = [[Lorgar|Lorgar Aurelian]]
|Original Homeworld = Colchis
|Current Homeworld = Sicarus
|Champion = [[Erebus]], [[Kor Phaeron]]
|Specialty = Mass Indoctrination, Summoning [[Daemon]]s, Cult Uprisings.
|Strength = Legion strength
|Allegiance = [[Chaos Undivided]]
|Colours = Dark crimson and steel
}}
{{topquote|By its very nature, theology tends - and under certain conditions, must always tend - to become demonology.|Thomas Mann, Doctor Faustus}}
{{topquote|From the fires of betrayal unto the blood of revenge we bring the name of Lorgar, the Bearer of the Word, the favoured son of Chaos, all praise be given unto him. From those what would not heed we offer praise to those who do, that they might turn their gaze our way and gift us with the boon of pain, to turn the galaxy red with blood, and feed the hunger of the gods.|Excerpt from the three hundred and forty-first Book of the Epistles of Lorgar}}
{{topquote|We are twice armed if we fight with faith.|Plato}}
{{topquote|Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil? Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?|Epicurus}}

The Word Bearers are a legion of [[Chaos Space Marines]], sons of the [[Primarch]] [[Lorgar]], and the most infamous army of zealous, violent [[Space Marine|demigods of war]] this side of the [[Eye of Terror]]. Their bloody, thunderous, bellicose fury would make the [[Black Templars]] blush if they weren't so [[Heresy|GOD DAMN HERETICAL]]. They are essentially Jehovah's Witnesses fully armored and with a lot of guns.

==History==
There is a phenomenon of psychology that some people are prone to zealotry. It does not matter what they believe in, when they come to believe in something they believe in it with all their heart. This type of individual who is likely to end up becoming a fanatical member to a certain ideology will if they somehow become disillusioned with it, often find it easier to adopt an opposing or opposite ideology and be just as fanatical to said new cause rather than simply moderating their commitment to their first ideology as needed and making caveats and exceptions to its general principles. The Word Bearers are this phenomenon at its most extreme.
===Early History===
[[File:Dark_apostle_by_kunkka.jpg|250px|left|thumb|Why hello there unbeliever. Would you mind a small theological chat?]]
The Emperor used the genetic templates of the Primarchs to create the Legiones Astartes after the powers of Chaos stole the gestating Primarchs. Those who received gene-seed from template number seventeen stood apart from their brother Astartes in duty and outlook. They fought with utter devotion and a fanatical zeal. Their original recruits were drawn from the sons of defeated enemies, raised to know the crimes of their fathers and the price of the Emperor's forgiveness. Thus while the other Legions went to war with righteousness, the XVIIth fought with the cold fury that only the condemned and redeemed could know. While other Legions took some time to acquire formal names, the XVIIth was named the Imperial Heralds almost immediately after their founding. This was due to their early role: to deliver the Emperor's ultimatum of submission or destruction.
Upon defeating an enemy, the Imperial Heralds would empty their libraries and records of any contents deemed heretical or sorcerous. Condemned works, individuals, and buildings would be destroyed in the name of the Imperial Truth (though they also tended to exterminate the entire population of the places they conquered; see Antarctica). The Imperial Heralds repeated this process all across Terra during the Unification Wars. This gave the Imperial Heralds a rarely-spoken nickname among the greater Imperium: the Iconoclasts.

===Great Crusade===
[[File:Daemon world by majesticchicken.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Okay, so the Imperial Cult might not exactly be hot chickenwings with thousand island sauce, but worshipping Chaos might not be the best alternative.]]
The planet Colchis was full of people that worshipped a watered down version of chaos. Primarch XVII was adopted by Kor Phaeron, one of the chief priests, and given the name Lorgar. Lorgar received a vision of the Emperor and formed a religion around him, leading to a six-year religious civil war that Lorgar's faction eventually won, shortly before the Emperor came to Colchis. During the Great Crusade, they bore the word of the Emperor to new worlds, wiping out any traces of dissenting faiths as they assimilated cultures into the Imperial way of life, including enforcing the worship of the God-Emperor.

Their thorough attention to this kept them far behind the pace of other expeditionary fleets and drew the ire of the Emperor. He repeatedly made it clear that he did not consider himself a god and wanted Lorgar to knock it off and catch up with the other fleets. Lorgar responded by penning the original Lectitio Divinitatus, which would much later form the core of the beliefs of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor. Finally, the Emperor had enough and ordered the Ultramarines to make an example of him. They torched the world of Khur and called the entire Word Bearers legion to kneel in its ashes before Guilliman, Malcador, and the Emperor.

To say Lorgar was devastated would be an understatement. He spent an entire month in seclusion, taking only the advice of Kor Phaeron and First Chaplain Erebus. They revealed to him that they had kept the old faith alive and that many worlds appeared to have religions that aligned with it, suggesting a more primal truth than worship of the God-Emperor. They convinced Lorgar that the primordial truth was truer than the Imperial Truth and he took his legion on a pilgrimage to the Eye of Terror to learn more about Chaos.

===Chaos===
They were the guys who used to be really, really, really loyal to the [[Emprah]]. Like, these guys used to be the Church of the Emprah. After the [[Horus Heresy]], they became the complete opposite. Now they go around fucking up the Emprah's sepulchre planets, relic worlds, and cardinal worlds, setting up cathedrals to the [[Chaos Gods]] in their places. They are also notable for being the one [[Chaos]] legion to still have [[Chaplain]]s, known as [[Dark Apostle]]s, which is probably because they invented the idea of Space Marine preachers and no other traitor Legions wanted them after the Horus Heresy was over, because there is little sense in having morale officer in Chaos force. Unlike the other Chaos legions and renegade chapters, [[Red Corsairs]] notwithstanding, these guys actually managed to sort of keep their shit together rather than having everyone with a slightly fancier costume take his ball and go home. They're sorta like [[grimdark]] Chaos <s>Taliban</s> <s>Al-Qaeda</s> ISIS. Except the Word Bearers make <s>the Taliban</s> <s>Al-Qaeda</s> ISIS look like [[Tumblr|hippies]] in comparison.

Their hobbies include human sacrifice, prayers to the [[Chaos Gods]], [[daemon]] summoning, and occult study.

First Chaplain Erebus was actually pretty much the driving force behind Horus turning to Chaos. At the climax of ''Horus Rising'', Erebus steals a weapon from the [[Interex]], which caused them to get all butthurt and blame [[Horus]] and the Luna Wolves for the theft. In the next book, ''False Gods'', Horus and the merry Luna Wolves take a trip to Davin IV on Erebus's advice, during which all hell breaks loose and Horus takes some wounds and comes as close as a [[primarch]] can to a near-death experience (he basically took a nap). [[Abaddon]], having as many daddy issues as Horus, decided it'd be a good idea to follow the advice of Erebus and take Horus to a local temple run by the serpent-worshiping locals, where it was said he could be healed. Erebus sent Horus into a trance and basically whispered sweet nothings about [[Chaos]] into his ear the entire time, planting the very first seed of corruption.

==Word Bearers Today==
After 10,000 years of violence, terror, destruction, and fervent worship of the Ruinous Powers, combined with orchestrating the Horus Heresy, the Word Bearers have achieved god-tier infamy status unmatched by [[Black Legion|nearly]] ANY OTHER CHAOS WORSHIPERS. The Black Legion and other Legions have proven to be much greater threats to the Imperium overall, but the Word Bearers' sheer zealous hatred for the Imperium and the Imperial Cult propels them to some truly legendary status. It truly cannot be overstated. Sabtec, an Aspiring Champion from the Word Bearers Trilogy(read it, it's [[Awesome]]), was personally rewarded with a masterwork Power Sword by EREBUS HIMSELF for not only for heroics in defeating an entire order of the Sisters of Battle, [[FATAL|but for his 13th Coterie capturing, then ritualistically raping, mutilating, and sacrificing an ENTIRE COMPANY of Sisters]]. Yeah.... Shit....

Yet despite this fanaticism, they are the most organized, structured, and uniform Traitor Legion by quite a lot(Iron Warriors is close, Black Legion not really, and Alpha Legion....).
As such, combined with their surprisingly understandable and HUMAN conflict during the Great Crusade and Heresy, the Word Bearers function as a true brotherhood. Backstabbing is mostly minimal, command hierarchy is mostly respected, the Marines themselves are comrades or sometimes even FRIENDS, and great honors are given to those who fall in battle and those who rise to power. It is not accurate to say that they join hands and sing the gospel of love in comparison to other Legions though, as [[Grimdark|bitter rivalries can surface, leaders of Hosts can....Excommunicate you if they aren't fan of your interpretations of the faith, and, in true Chaos Space marine fashion, the strong are strongest alone.]]

==Organization==
Yeah, we know what you're thinking: organization? Of a Traitor Legion? While it may surprise you, the Word Bearers still function as an organized Legion (though much looser than the Legiones Astartes). Ironically, their uttermost commitment to Chaos as a religion gives them a semblance of order (DOUBLE HERESY?) As such, they have a clearly designated hierarchy and command structure. While Lorgar remains the ultimate master of the Word Bearers, in reality he has allowed command to fall as such:

*'''Master of the Faith''': The de jure head of the Word Bearers in Lorgar's absence, currently held by First Captain [[Kor Phaeron]].

*'''Chief Dark Apostle''': The head of the priesthood, and true power behind the throne of the legion, currently held by [[Erebus]].

*'''Dark Council''': A collection of Dark Apostles who oversee the overall actions of the Legion, and confirm the ascension of other Dark Apostles.

*'''Dark Apostle''': spiritual leader of a Host, the primary organization of the Word Bearers following the Horus Heresy. Dark Apostles are confirmed by the Dark Council and in turn make the decisions of the rank and advancement for the Host.

*'''Coryphaus''': The senior military commander of a host, comparable to a [[Chapter Master]] or [[First Captain]]. The Coryphaus leads the Host's returns during religious ceremonies (and trust us, the Word Bearers have a lot of religious ceremonies) and makes all tactical decisions during actual combat, freeing up the Dark Apostle to better commune with the Chaos Gods.

*'''Icon Bearers''': A Word Bearer charged with carrying the Icon of the XVII Legion in battle, similar to a Company Standard Bearer in a [[Space Marine Chapter]].

*'''Champion''': The leader of Word Bearer squads, know as coteries. Comparable to a Squad Captain from the Legiones Astartes.

*'''Aspiring Champion''': Another Squad leader, comparable to a [[Brother-Sergeant|Sergeant]].

*'''Anointed''': The [[Terminator]]s of a Host.

*'''Gal Vorbak''': The [[Possessed Marine]]s of a Host.

*'''Warrior-Brother''': The rank and file soldiers of a host.

==Daily Rituals==

*04:00: Morning Prayer: The Word Bearers are roused from their cells to begin the day with sermons from the Book of Lorgar read by the Dark Apostle. Prayer lasts four hours, one dedicated to each of the Chaos Gods.
*08:00: Morning Firing Rites: The Word Bearers engage in target practice. Often using human slaves captured during raids.
*09:00: Battle Practice: The Word Bearers descend to the practice cages for training.
*12:00: Midday Meal: A light meal is prepared by the Legion Serfs. Cooking the meal improperly will often see the Legion Serf become the next meal.
*12:30: Tactical Indoctrination: The Word Bearers gather for a tactical briefing, showing which planets they will be invading, and locations of cathedrals to the False Emperor which must be destroyed. Marines who have not demonstrated enough daily heretical devotion are dispatched to go door to door in Imperial neighborhoods with the Book of Lorgar, inquiring "“Excuse me sir, do you have a moment to talk about CHAOS?"
*14:00: Evening Firing Rites: The Word Bearers gather for target practice.
*15:00: Evening Prayer: The Word Bearers gather for the Dark Apostle to lead them in prayer. Daemonic pacts are often made during Evening Prayer, and Marines may be blessed with possession.
*19:00: Evening Meal: A feast is prepared by the Legion Serfs. Sometimes Legion Serfs are on the menu.
*20:00: Evening Maintenance: Word Bearers will be stripped of their [[Power Armour]] (assuming they can still remove it) for repairs to be completed. Sometimes Warrior-Brothers will see the Apothecary to check on the status of mutations.
*00:00: Rest Period: The Word Bearers retire to their cells for rest.

==Famous Word Bearers==
In [[Dawn of War|Dark Crusade,]] the Dark Apostle [[Eliphas]] leads a warband of Word Bearers to take over Kronus. [[Awesome]] ensues.

In the videogame [[Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate]], an ENTIRE Word Bearers ARMY OF 10,000 MARINES is lead by the Chaos LORD Zymran, who is the main antagonist of the game. Apart from sounding MANLY, he does nothing but taunt the Ultramarines like a saturday morning cartoon villain (''Seriously all he needs is that large mustache to twirl and he'll be as contrived as the [[Abbadon|Warmaster]] himself''). Ultimately somewhat forgettable.

There's also some faggot named Marduk, from the book series, as well as his awesome terminator Coryphaus, Kol Badar.

Amongst [[/tg/]], the most famous Word Bearer would be [[Dranon]].

{{Template:Chaos-Official}}
[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]][[Category:Chaos]][[Category:Space Marines]]